Woodlawn is a former

estate house An estate is a large parcel of land under single ownership, which generates income for its owner. British context In the United Kingdom, historically an estate comprises the houses, outbuildings, supporting farmland, tenanted buildings, and ...

overlooking the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

Garrison A garrison is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters. A garrison is usually in a city ...

, New York, United States. It was designed in the mid-19th century by

Richard Upjohn Richard Upjohn (22 January 1802 – 16 August 1878) was a British-American architect who immigrated to the United States and became most famous for his Gothic Revival churches. He was partially responsible for launching the movement to popula ...

, who resided in the area for the last years of his life. Later on it became the Malcolm Gordon School, and it is currently the headquarters of the

Hastings Center The Hastings Center for Bioethics is an independent, nonpartisan bioethics research institute in Garrison, New York. Its mission is to address ethical issues in health care, science, and technology. Through its projects and publications and its pu ...

, a prominent

bioethics Bioethics is both a field of study and professional practice, interested in ethical issues related to health (primarily focused on the human, but also increasingly includes animal ethics), including those emerging from advances in biology, me ...

research institution. In 1982 it was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Property

Woodlawn is a property on the west side of NY 9D just south of St. Basil Academy, at one time the estate of

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

owner

Jacob Ruppert Jacob Ruppert Jr. (August 5, 1867 – January 13, 1939) was an American brewer, businessman, National Guard colonel and politician who served for four terms representing New York in the United States House of Representatives from 1899 to 1907. ...

. It is a complex of several buildings, three of which are considered

contributing resources In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distr ...

to the Register listing. The main house is a two-story brick structure on a stone foundation. There are

frame A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...

single-story additions on the north and east. Its steeply- pitched cross-

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

d roof, with exposed

rafter A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members such as Beam (structure), steel beams that extend from the ridge or hip to the wall plate, downslope perimeter or eave, and that are designed to support the roof Roof shingle, shingles, ...

s at the

eave The eaves are the edges of the roof which overhang the face of a wall and, normally, project beyond the side of a building. The eaves form an overhang to throw water clear of the walls and may be highly decorated as part of an architectural sty ...

s, is pierced by two

dormer window A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the usable spac ...

s on either side and a brick chimney at the south end. On the west (front) facade is an

oriel window An oriel window is a form of bay window which protrudes from the main wall of a building but does not reach to the ground. Supported by corbels, bracket (architecture), brackets, or similar cantilevers, an oriel window generally projects from an ...

with a

balcony A balcony (from , "scaffold") is a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade, usually above the ground floor. They are commonly found on multi-level houses, apartme ...

above. A porch with Corinthian columns wraps around the south and west sides of the house. On the east the addition, originally built as a detached gym and now the center's Morison Library, is now connected to the house via a

breezeway A breezeway is an architectural feature similar to a hallway that allows the passage of a breeze between structures to accommodate high winds, allow aeration, or provide aesthetic design variation. Often, a breezeway is a simple roof connectin ...

. The north extension projects from the porch and includes a garage, workshop, and apartment. A small

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

kitchen wing has been added to the north side of the house as well. The three detached buildings are a combination

stable A stable is a building in which working animals are kept, especially horses or oxen. The building is usually divided into stalls, and may include storage for equipment and feed. Styles There are many different types of stables in use tod ...

and

hayloft A hayloft is a space above a barn, stable or cow-shed, traditionally used for storage of hay or other fodder for the animals below. Haylofts were used mainly before the widespread use of very large Baler, hay bales, which allow simpler handling ...

, carriage shed and ice house. The first, a one-story stucco structure, has since been converted into an apartment. The shed and ice house, frame and board-and-

batten A batten is most commonly a strip of solid material, historically wood but can also be of plastic, metal, or fiberglass. Battens are variously used in construction, sailing, and other fields. In the lighting industry, battens refer to linea ...

respectively, are now used for storage.

History

William Moore, a partner in a large New York City

import An importer is the receiving country in an export from the sending country. Importation and exportation are the defining financial transactions of international trade. Import is part of the International Trade which involves buying and receivin ...

ing firm, commissioned Upjohn to design the house in 1854. He and his wife and their descendants used it as a summer residence until it was purchased by Malcolm Gordon in 1927 to start the boys' boarding school he named after himself. Gordon made the changes to the property. The north wing was built in 1931 and expanded eight years later. Two decades later, in 1956, the gym was added. The kitchen wing was built in 1966, and three years later the garage on the north wing was added. The school remained active until the early 1980s. The Hastings Center moved in a decade later. Some renovations were necessary.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in New York Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Richard Upjohn buildings Gothic Revival architecture in New York (state) Hudson River Houses completed in 1854 Houses in Putnam County, New York National Register of Historic Places in Putnam County, New York

Property

History

See also

References